


Dream

by Jin_Saito



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-09-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:55:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26374579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jin_Saito/pseuds/Jin_Saito
Summary: Even for a fleeting moment, a new dream is born from the near destruction of mankind.
Relationships: Armin Arlert & Annie Leonhart, Armin Arlert/Annie Leonhart
Comments: 3
Kudos: 100





	Dream

**Author's Note:**

> Kindly steer clear from this fanfiction if you haven’t read chapter 131 yet, please. Thank you.

“I still want to believe that there’s still a world we don’t know about yet out there… Past the walls.” Armin breaks his gaze from the seagull, then fixates his eyes on the vast sky above him and Annie. He marvels at the sight of the clouds undeterred by the impending doom looming over the innocents. Then, he wonders if there truly is a disaster threatening the world. Everything seems so peaceful, so serene, so quiet.

The seagull takes its leave, which grants him more time alone with Annie once again. Intending to make the time he has with her worthwhile, Armin stands up and offers a hand to Annie in silence. She looks at his hand then at him, straight at his baby blue eyes that seemed to have lost their resplendence, instead replaced with desolation.

For once, even though she is fully capable of standing up on her own two feet, she accepts the offer and places her hand on his.

Armin inhales, relishing the scent of the salt sea water, then exhales heavily before leaning on the ship’s deck railing. The two stood there in peaceful stillness for a brief moment, both staring at the horizon, before Armin breaks the silence. “How are you holding up?” He treads the situation carefully with the correct choice of words.

“Hm?”

“I heard you don’t wish to fight anymore.”

Annie looks down at her shoes. She has always been like that, Armin thinks to himself. She would always hide from the crowd either by looking down, avoiding people’s gaze, or pulling her hoodie up, all in an attempt to bypass any form of social interaction. But, the case today is different. The motivation is no longer there.

Although he doesn’t wish to probe, Armin surmises that it’s for the best if he gives her a sense of existence, at least. Give her a reason to keep on living, despite knowing all too well that her own time is nearing its expiration.

“What’s your dream, Annie?”, Armin inquires. This causes Annie to hesitate.

“My… dream. I guess that’s all there is to it now,” she replies nonchalantly, but there’s a hint of sadness in her voice. “Home. It was the only thing that kept me motivated. It was my drive. I have a home to return to. But… where else will I go if it’s no more?”

Armin gives her a pained smile. Her question gave him an idea on what to do next, hoping that it can spark a flame in her tired and cold heart.

“It depends on your definition of home, I suppose. I also have nowhere to go once all of this is over, if I manage to survive.” Annie listens intently. “I lost my parents way back, and even my grandfather. Our house is obviously non-existent at this point. Where will _I_ go? We’re the same in that sense. But just like you said, I won’t give up on talking to Eren, even though I have known for a long time that I have no home to return to. Also…”

Armin closes his eyes. “The sea”, he mumbles, but enough for Annie to hear. She throws the statement back to him but in a form of question, or rather, confirmation. “The sea?” Armin glances at Annie and leans closer to her. Annie, flustered, pretends to be unaffected and focuses her sight on the ocean.

“Maybe I’ve told you this a million times before for the past four years, but I’ve always wanted to take you to the ocean with me.”

Annie’s eyes widen from his sudden, second confession. Armin snickers, regardless of her hair blocking his view to see her reaction. “I guess this is the closest that I can get.”

Annie tries to recall any remaining memory she has when she was still in the crystal, back when Armin would sit in front of her and talk for hours despite being aware that she would never reply. She thought it was senseless, comedic even, that someone like Armin Arlert would waste his time talking to a literal block of crystal. However, she grew to love his “story-telling”, yet most do not have happy endings.

And amidst the myriad of things he had told her, he _has_ been telling her, she remembers him expressing his excitement over the ocean. Annie also begins to vividly recognize his odd declarations of wanting to bring her there.

_‘You can make fun of me while I fawn all over the ocean’s beauty, I wouldn’t mind.’_

_‘Let’s collect seashells once you’re out, okay?’_

_‘Do you know how to swim? Maybe you can teach me how.’_

_‘It’s peaceful in the ocean. I’m certain we can wash our worries away there.’_

_‘The sea doesn’t judge you. It won’t call you a monster, so please come out, Annie.’_

“Peace…” Annie says, but in a higher pitch than usual, and Armin quickly takes note of the sudden change. She keeps covering her face with her hair on purpose, he notices, so he reaches out to put some strands behind her ear. There’s no hesitation, no doubt or worry in his heart. The gentle caress of his fingertips on her skin made her feel emotions, those that she never had in her entire life.

Suddenly, he speaks. “It’s okay to cry, Annie.”

When Annie remained silent, Armin continues in a firmer tone. “Look at me.” She does what she’s told. “Right here, right now, you’re not a Warrior. I don’t see you as one. So please, be yourself. Be human, a woman.” He repeats. “It’s okay to cry.”

She didn’t, even though she wanted to. She, however, tells Armin of her dream.

Her new dream.

“A peaceful life sounds nice,” Annie muses. “Yeah, that’s what I want. I want to live the rest of my life in peace, like how you describe the ocean to me.”

Knowing that he somehow succeeded in giving her hope to continue living, Armin smiles serenely at this. Although seemingly impossible at this trying time, he finds his heart at peace and secretly hopes Annie feels the same way. Armin then proceeds to tease her, curious as to what sort of reaction he will get. “Peace, huh? Let me guess. Peace for you is pie, lots of them.” Annie doesn’t say anything. Instead, she looks up at Armin in disbelief, clearly finding his choice of humor feeble. Regardless, Armin himself is able to get a small laugh out of his own failed attempt at banter.

Armin then scratches the back of his head and looks at the ship deck’s floor, suddenly finding it oddly interesting. “So… if it’s not pie, t-then do you think this moment, right now, with me, is peaceful for you?” His face is tainted red, and so is Annie’s. She scoffs at his question in an attempt to dismiss the tingling sensation of fluttering butterflies in her stomach. “With the rumbling? It’s far from peaceful. But…” Annie takes a swift glance at Armin before placing her lightly clenched fist on her chest, the rosy red color still intact on her face. “With you here, I guess it’s… it makes things much better for me, even if for just a short moment.”

“Annie…”

The two lock their eyes at each other, both lost in a plethora of mutual thoughts swirling inside their minds, the safest place to keep a secret. Yet, they both have no plans in keeping them a secret anymore.

Armin reaches out his hand to hold hers, but withdraws it. “I won’t force you to fight. You don’t need to. But promise me you will wait for me. I _will_ talk to Eren and I will make sure all of this will end. Because… I have someone to return to, and that’s you.”

In this cruel world and ill-fated moment, they have found peace with each other. And perhaps, if they are blessed with the chance to choose where they would love to be, the answer is one and the same:

At each other’s arms.

And, if destiny decides to spare them of their tragic fate in the years to come, their definition of home would be similar as well.


End file.
